Mid-Term
Explain the rationale behind the statement "A first class team with a second class idea is better than a second class team with a first class idea."
-If you have identified an excellent opportunity but your team lacks the experience to implement it, you will not be able to fulfill the idea's potential -The crucial ingredients for the entrepreneurial successes are: a superb entrepreneur with a first-rate management team and an excellent market opportunity -Entrepreneurship is not a matter of luck, but an ability to combine one's experience with one's knowledge and to bring an idea to life
What are some of the trade-offs of the first mover's advantage?
-You have to be first (or very early) into the market -You need to capture a large percentage of the market quickly -You need to create switching costs so the customer will stick with your product or service, which can be extremely difficult in today's internet world -The process is very expensive
10 D's
1. Dream 2. Decisiveness 3. Doers 4. Determination 5. Dedication 6. Devotion 7. Details 8. Destiny 9. Dollars 10. Distribute
9 F's
1. Founders 2. Focused 3. Fast 4. Flexible 5. Forever innovating 6. Flat 7. Frugal 8. Friendly 9. Fun
What factors make up a viable opportunity?
A viable opportunity contains a favourable set of circumstances that are: -attractive (financially) -durable (long-lasting) -timely (the market is ready for it)
Which of the following most typifies a "cocktail entrepreneur"? A) Fails to take action B) Popular C) Productive D) Decisive E) Possesses a predilection for cocktails
A) Fails to take action
When determining how to allocate scarce resources, an entrepreneur should: A) Focus on the company's key success factors B) Spread resources around to gain experience C) Focus exclusively on marketing D) Focus exclusively on technology E) None of the above
A) Focus on the company's key success factors
In general, the most important source of capital for a new entrepreneurial venture is which of the following? A) Informal Investors B) Venture Capital C) Banks D) Profits from the venture E) Incubators
A) Informal Investors
Which of the following most directly affects revenue, profits, and how consumers perceive a product's position in the market? A) Pricing B) Promotion C) Place D) Product E) Prioritization
A) Pricing
On average, small and medium-sized businesses in Canada make about what % net income? A) 1% B) 12% C) 25% D) 50% E) 90%
B) 12%
Companies' book values are generally much less than their stock market valuations because: A) Auditors tend to err on the conservative side B) All accountants are generally required by accounting standards to ignore the value of brands and all other repetitional assets C) To be on the safe side accountants tend to undervalue brand values D) Accountants and marketing experts have different methods of valuing brands
B) All accountants are generally required by accounting standards to ignore the value of brands and all other repetitional assets
Price discrimination is a pricing strategy that: A) Limits sales to a specific demographic B) Charges different prices to different customer segments C) Prices below the prevailing market prices in order to gain market share D) Sets the price at a predetermined level above the per unit cost of production E) None of the above
B) Charges different prices to different customer segments
What is the revenue strategy of both Walmart and Amazon? A) Low costs, high margins B) Low margins, high volumes C) High margins, high volumes D) High costs, low volumes E) None of the above
B) Low margins, high volumes
The final appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of a firm's resources and capabilities A) Is a quantitative appraisal by an objective outside body B) Requires insight and understanding of a firm's industry, and its position within the industry C) Requires artistic flair and creative questioning D) Requires detailed knowledge of business strategy theory, and all its intellectual roots
B) Requires insight and understanding of a firm's industry, and its position within the industry
Which of the following is the cheapest and easiest way to enter new markets? A) Venture financing B) Technology transfer C) Exporting D) Outsourcing E) Foreign direct investment
C) Exporting
Where do most entrepreneurs get the idea for their businesses? A) Through brainstorming B) From mentors C) From exposure to an industry D) By reading entrepreneurship books E) From venture capitalists
C) From exposure to an industry
All entrepreneurs face the need for brand building, which is: A) The task of building brand awareness B) The task of building brand equity C) The dual task of building brand awareness and brand equity D) Building either brand awareness or brand equity E) The task of building other issues
C) The dual task of building brand awareness and brand equity
Which of the following is true about all of the large, retail corporations in existence today? A) They started as multinationals B) They employed a franchising strategy C) They had roots in one geographic region D) They attracted venture capital E) None of the above
C) They had roots in one geographic region
To value a firm's tangible resources A) We should take the historical cost book value B) We must update historic cost assets to current cost (modern replacement cost) assets C) We need to know how they could be used optimally D) This is a specialist task for professional accountants
C) We need to know how they could be used optimally
A $150,000 investment in a company that yielded $30,000 dividend in the first year would have achieved which of the following ROI? A) 2% B) 5% C) 15% D) 20% E) 30%
D) 20% ($30,000 / $150, 000)
What percentage of new business ventures in Canada typically service their first 5 years of operation? A) 100 B) 81 C) 65 D) 36 E) 25
D) 36
Investors typically expect an annual rate of return in the range of _______, from a growing startup: A) -20% to 0% B) 0% to 10% C) 5% to 25% D) 40% to 60% E) 80% to 120%
D) 40% to 60%
Of the following differentiators, which most commonly determines the success of a company? A) The number of distinct products offered B) Competitive advantage C) Being the first player to enter a market D) Better execution than the competition E) A and C
D) Better execution than the competition
Positioning describes a company's offering relative to the product attributes that are most important to whom? A) Investors B) Marketers C) Competitors D) Customers E) All of the above
D) Customers
Small business represents what percentage of total R&D expenditure in Canada? A) 3 B) 11 C) 31 D) 66 E) 91
E) 91
What markets are characterized by "stealth" competition? A) Growing B) Primitive C) Developed D) Speculative E) Emerging
E) Emerging
Who are the millennial generation and what is the important difference between them and baby boomer generation?
Millennials: -Born after 1980 -Accustomed to a digital life -More comfortable & technology literate than their parents The millennial generation's prolific use of the internet coupled with a sense of digital mastery will be the driving force for social transformation.
Operational Experience
Prior know-how with regard to the building and delivery of the solution
What is the talent triangle and what are the key components?
Refers to the attributes that make up a successful management team. Includes 3 elements: -Business acumen -Operational experience -Domain knowledge
Business Acumen
Skill and expertise in the development of strategy and the execution of business planning
Domain Knowledge
Understanding the customers and the industry within the business domain
What are some defining characteristics of the five categories of people who engage with technology?
-Innovators (2.5%): risk takers who have the resources to try new things -Early Adopters (13.5%): selective with which type of innovation they interact with. More willing to convince others to use a product they themselves enjoy. -Early Majority (34%): Take their time before embracing a new tech trend. Tend to accept new technology when they fully understand how it works and how it can integrate within their lives. -Late Majority (34%): Tend to adopt in response to peer pressure and embrace the norms -Laggards (16%): Traditional and take their time in adopting any new tech. Most of their decisions are based on past experiences and are often too economical to take new risks.
Give 3 examples of triggering events that give birth to a new organization
-Job dissatisfaction -Loss of job -Dissatisfaction with current level of income -Desire to be independent
Why is the marketing done by entrepreneurs different from marketing done by established companies?
-Limited resources (financial limitations & time constraints) -Little or no market share & confined geographic market (enjoy few economies of scale) -Limited market information, decision making can be muddled by strong, personal biases and beliefs. Early-stage companies often stumble in their marketing because of a product focus that is excessively narrow -Market to multiple audiences: investors, customers, employees, and business partners. Because none of these bonds is well established for early stage companies, entrepreneurs must be customer-oriented and relationship-oriented
The three crucial components of a successful venture are the opportunity, the entrepreneur/management team, and the resources needed to start the company. Explain the interrelation of these items.
-The crucial driving force of any new venture is the lead entrepreneur and the founding management team. -In entrepreneurship, success is a question of recognizing a good opportunity and having the ability to convert that opportunity into a thriving business -The ability to find the necessary resources and to use them efficiently is the metaphoric chain linking the entrepreneur and the opportunity
Brand awareness is created through a customer's exposure to what? A) Advertising or publicity B) Social media C) Education D) Promotion E) Price reductions
A) Advertising or publicity
An important part of gaining the market's acceptance is: A) Building brand awareness B) Reducing the product's COGS C) Franchising the brand D) Building celebrity client network E) All of the above
A) Building brand awareness
While segmentation profiles a company's customers, what does positioning outline? A) Customer perceptions B) Cost C) Operational advantage D) Revenue E) Profit potential
A) Customer perceptions
Threshold capabilities enable a firm to do what every firm in its industry must do. Distinctive competences: A) Describe those things that an organization does particularly well relative to its competitors B) Are unique to its selling point C) Are those product features that stop non-customers from buying the product D) Are captured in logos, trademarks, etc.
A) Describe those things that an organization does particularly well relative to its competitors
Which of the following is not one of the 10 Ds of successful entrepreneurs? A) Driven B) Details C) Dedicated D) Distribute E) Dream
A) Driven
What is the short-sighted thinking behind the penetration-pricing strategy? A) Pricing below competitors will lead to higher market share B) Gross margins should be very high for a new product C) Loyal customers demand the lowest price D) The simplest method of selective prices saves time E) Prices should match the value of products
A) Pricing below competitors will lead to higher market share
Which of the following is not a characteristic of most entrepreneurial ideas? A) They are unique B) They offer improved performance C) They offer lower pricing D) They offer higher quality E) They offer better service
A) They are unique
What is the concept of double dipping? A) Having another income source while starting a new venture B) Generating multiple revenue streams from one product C) Launching two products simultaneously D) Partnering with another company to launch a product E) None of the above
B) Generating multiple revenue streams from one product
An organization capability requires: A) Many unique resources B) Just one unique resource C) No unique resources D) Individuals to coordinate with each other, and some capital or technology, to achieve a valuable transformation to goods or services
D) Individuals to coordinate with each other, and some capital or technology, to achieve a valuable transformation to goods or services
What is the only action that the "gather stimuli" stage requires of the entrepreneur? A) Ask B) Think C) Do nothing D) Observe E) Research
D) Observe
The attractiveness of a market segment is related to its size, growth rate, and ________. A) Cost B) Price C) Competitive advantage D) Potential profit E) None of the above
D) Potential profit
